"Nervous?"
Liu Bai smiled faintly, confidence radiating from his expression.
"Shouldn't it be the others who are nervous?"
The three women standing before him silently watched the young man, divine light flashing faintly within their eyes.
Three days passed in the blink of an eye.
When the dawn light of the third day tore through the night and spilled over the land, deep, sonorous drums suddenly echoed throughout the heavens of the Great Heavenlaw Sky.
Boom, boom, boom!
The drumbeats carried a soaring battle spirit, stirring even the spiritual energy between heaven and earth into restless motion.
Countless figures swept across the skies, the sharp sound of wind-rending ringing through everyone's ears.
The Greatlaw GoldPond Battle was an event of great significance within the entire Great Heavenlaw Domain. After all, within this domain, the power struggles among various factions were always fierce — something clearly evident from the tension between the Blood Hawk Palace and the Nine Nether Palace.
Everyone sought to stand out in this grand event. To achieve good results, all major factions sent forth their strongest champions, hoping to use this opportunity to enhance their reputation within Great Heavenlaw Domain.
Of course, there was also the irresistible allure of the Greatlaw GoldPond itself — a miraculous pool capable of refining and perfecting one's Sovereign Celestial Body. Such power was enough to make countless Sovereign burn with desire.
However, this time's GoldPond Battle would not proceed as expected...
GoldPond Peak, located deep within Greatlaw Heaven, earned its name from its summit — lush and verdant, yet shining with dazzling golden radiance. That brilliance marked the sacred location of the Greatlaw GoldPond itself.
Unfortunately, within the Great Heavenlaw Domain, GoldPond Peak was a forbidden area, ordinarily closed to outsiders. Only when the GoldPond Battle commenced would entry be temporarily allowed.
Today, beneath GoldPond, the atmosphere was blazing with battle intent, a sea of roiling voices shaking the skies.
A dense mass of figures stretched from the mountain's base to the distant horizon — a sight of magnificent grandeur.
At the mountain foot, nine colossal stone platforms occupied different positions. Each was brimming with murderous intent, where nine powerful contingents stood tall and silent, their collective aura suffocating.
Atop each platform sat a single throne. Upon those thrones rested nine figures, overlooking the crowd below with dragonlike and tigerlike majesty. Their mere gaze made many experts avert their eyes. The Nine Kings of Great Heavenlaw Domain— their names resonated even across the entire Northern Region.
Yet, until now, there had always been only eight present. The Nine Nether Palace had long been absent from such events, and many had believed it to be nothing more than an empty name.
But today, the reappearance of the Nine Nether Palace and the dragonlike might of those under its banner drew countless astonished gazes.
Recalling the rumors that had spread across the Great Heavenlaw Domain in the past month, many turned their attention toward the young man standing behind Jiuyou.
Liu Bai felt the countless gazes upon him, his expression calm and composed.
Even when he noticed the sinister look in the Blood Hawk King's eyes, Liu Bai merely smiled warmly in return.
That faint smile made the Blood Hawk King's killing intent almost impossible to suppress. Yet behind him, even figures like Cao Feng and other Blood Hawk Palace commanders lowered their heads slightly, none dared to meet Liu Bai's eyes.
The Blood Hawk King gave a cold snort, and Cao Feng and the others trembled inwardly.
Still, the former did not lash out. There was no point — the disparity in power was too great. No amount of anger could bridge that gap.
Unfortunately for him, though the Blood Hawk King chose to endure, Jiuyou or rather, the Tang Bing sisters clearly had no intention of letting things go. The current Jiuyou couldn't even be bothered to concern herself with such matters.
"Cao Feng, that traitor," Tang Bing said through gritted teeth. "Back then, he and Wu Tian personally led the attack that swept through our Nine Nether Palace's territories. Many of our people were forced to surrender to them."
Behind Liu Bai and the Tang sisters, Qiu Shan added in a low voice, "If not for Lord Jiuyou back then, Cao Feng would have been nothing but a dog. Now he dares side with others against our Palace. That wretch — if we ever get the chance, our Nine Nether Guards will make sure he dies miserably!"
Liu Bai could clearly sense it — both Tang Bing and Qiu Shan, along with all the Nine Nether Guards, harbored a deep, burning hatred toward that traitor Cao Feng.
In that case…
"Don't worry," Liu Bai said lightly. "He won't leave this GoldPond Peak alive."
Since killing wasn't forbidden in this GoldPond Battle, Liu Bai had no reason to hold back.
"Don't be careless!" Jiuyou's calm yet solemn voice suddenly rang out.
"I just received word — this time's GoldPond is different from before. Nearly a hundred participants will be joining, and none of them are weak."
Liu Bai was taken aback. "So many? I thought there was a quota limit?"
If there were always this many slots, why would the Nine Kings fight so fiercely over them?
"This time, the Three Emperors have decided to expand the number of participants. So, in addition to the Nine Kings' forces, several subordinate powers of the Great Heavenlaw Domain have also received entry slots…"
At this, Jiuyou's beautiful face turned solemn.
"I don't know why this change was made, but it likely has something to do with the Blood Hawk King. I also heard he's been rallying quite a few forces lately — perhaps to deal with you on GoldPond Peak."
"Oh? That's good news then."
Jiuyou: "...?"
Her entire group from the Nine Nether Palace froze in disbelief. Why did he sound happy to hear that someone was plotting against him?
"Relax," Liu Bai said, smiling faintly. "I'll handle it. I just hope they bring enough people."
A few more Second-Grade Sovereign would be enough for him to level up — though such experts weren't exactly easy to find. It all depended on how "helpful" the Blood Hawk King would be.
Boom! Boom!
As the fervent battle spirit in the heavens reached its peak, the deep toll of a bell echoed throughout the sky, resonating endlessly.
With the bell's chime, divine light gathered in the sky. Space rippled, and three luminous figures slowly appeared — the three most supreme existences of the Great Heavenlaw Domain.
They were the Sky Vulture Emperor, the Spiritual Pupil Emperor, and the most mysterious of all, the Sleeping Emperor.
As the three appeared, countless people bowed low in reverence. Even the Nine Kings rose from their thrones and clasped their fists.
At this moment, heaven and earth fell silent — only the Three Emperors stood calmly above all, their presence unmatched.
The Sky Vulture Emperor waved his sleeve, and a gentle force swept through the air, lifting everyone to their feet once more.
"The rules of the Greatlaw GoldPond are already known to all, so I won't repeat them," he said, his aged voice carrying across the mountains. "No matter what means you use to reach the summit, no one will interfere. Here, only the result matters — not the method."
"The final number of entries into the GoldPond will be four. How you fight for them depends on your own strength."
As the Sky Vulture Emperor's voice faded, a chilling tension filled the land. Many eyes sharpened, brimming with killing intent.
All who had come were the elites of their respective factions. With such stakes, no one would yield. To seize one of those four spots among so many powerful contenders — the struggle ahead would be brutal beyond compare.
"The time has come," said the Spiritual Pupil Emperor, his pupils gleaming faintly with spiritual light.
The Sky Vulture Emperor and Spiritual Pupil Emperor turned toward the drowsy man beside them and smiled. "Brother Meng, please open the GoldPond Peak."
Though they were equals in title, they knew full well — among the Three Emperors, the Sleeping Emperor was the one most trusted by the Lord of the Great Heavenlaw Domain.
"Mm."
The Sleeping Emperor yawned lazily, nodding as if just waking from a dream.
Buzz.
Three beams of divine light shot forth from the Emperors hands and plunged into GoldPond. At once, everyone saw the space surrounding the mountain twist and distort, while the peak itself grew ever clearer…
Boom!
When GoldPond Peak fully revealed itself, an indescribably vast surge of spiritual energy swept outward. The entire world seemed to be dyed gold.
A golden torrent poured down from the towering summit, making GoldPond Peak look as though it had been cast entirely from gold.
Sensing the terrifying aura contained within that golden torrent, even Liu Bai couldn't help but have his eyes light up.
"The power of this torrent… I'm afraid that anyone below the Sovereign Realm wouldn't be able to endure it at all. And if one hasn't condensed a Celestial Body, trying to reach the summit under the torrent's impact would be almost impossible."
Liu Bai's words were also affirmed by Jiuyou.
"This serves as a threshold. If you can't even withstand the golden torrent, then you shouldn't enter and seek death."
When GoldPond Peak reached its most dazzling brilliance, the Sky Vulture Emperor waved his hand in the sky.
"The contest for the Greatlaw GoldPond begins now."
Whoosh! Whoosh!
The instant the Sky Vulture Emperor's faint voice descended from the sky, pillars of majestic spiritual energy shot upward. One after another, figures leapt into the air, charging toward GoldPond Peak at lightning speed.
Likewise, on the other eight stone platforms, the many commanders under the Eight Kings immediately set off as well.
"Lord Liu Bai, this time everything depends on you!"
Qiu Shan, Bei Mo, and Lan Hai—the three strongest among the Nine Nether Guards—simultaneously clasped their fists and bowed toward Liu Bai.
Naturally, Liu Bai knew exactly what they meant. He merely smiled faintly and said, "Relax. I won't disappoint you."
As soon as his words fell, he tapped the ground with the tip of his foot. Spiritual energy surged around his body, transforming into a golden firebird that shot straight into GoldPond Peak.
Behind him, Jiuyou watched his disappearing figure, a faint smile appearing on her beautiful face.
In her heart, she had never once doubted that Liu Bai would disappoint her.
In midair, the Three Emperors waved their sleeves. Space rippled, spiritual energy gathered, and enormous spiritual light mirrors condensed one after another. The figures of everyone who entered GoldPond Peak appeared clearly within them.
On the nine stone platforms, the Kings all raised their heads, expressions varying as they stared at the spiritual light mirrors.
Hua!
Suddenly, an uproar erupted among the spectators, and countless gazes were drawn to one particular mirror.
There, a figure was splattered with blood, followed by blinding lightning that filled the field of vision.
When everything settled, the figure was gone—only a charred corpse remained at the spot…
"Who was that just now? How could it be so terrifying? He killed a First-Grade Sovereign who tried to ambush him in a single strike!" someone cried out in shock.
That fleeting figure had moved far too fast; many people hadn't even clearly seen who it was.
"That was Liu Bai… the new commander of the Nine Nether Palace. He's the one rumored to have single-handedly resisted the thousand-man formation of the Blood Hawk Palace!"
By now, Liu Bai had already gained some fame, and someone quickly recognized him.
As for the person who had just been killed, others might not have noticed, but the Blood Hawk King saw it clearly. That man was one of the people he had recruited—a peak First-Grade Sovereign. The original plan was for them to join forces to deal with Liu Bai, but unexpectedly, that fool chose to act alone and attempt a sneak attack.
Clearly, tempted by the conditions offered by the Blood Hawk King and blinded by greed, he had completely forgotten the disparity between the two sides. His death was only natural.
"This Liu Bai's strength is no weaker than that of an ordinary Third-Grade Sovereign."
Among the Kings, the most solemn and also the strongest—Asura King finally spoke.
Although Xu Qing under his command also possessed the strength to contend with an ordinary Third-Grade Sovereign, he was simply not on the same level as someone like Liu Bai.
"This Greatlaw GoldPond—Liu Bai should take first place," said the Mountain Splitting King from the neighboring stone platform, his face full of admiration.
It was a pity such a talent wasn't under his command.
After entering GoldPond Peak, Liu Bai encountered three or four attacks in a very short time.
Not all of them were arranged by the Blood Hawk King. After all, there were only four spots for the Greatlaw GoldPond, yet over a hundred participants. Anyone one encountered could be a potential rival, so most chose to strike first.
However, after all those ambushers were effortlessly killed by Liu Bai in a single move, the remaining people were thoroughly intimidated.
Liu Bai was practically a god of slaughter! No one was willing to provoke such a person.
Liu Bai raised his head, narrowing his eyes as he looked toward the golden torrent above.
Vaguely, he could see nearly ten figures surging forward like swimming dragons at the very front. That was the first echelon of climbers—each and every one of them was no ordinary individual, all possessing formidable strength.
The corner of Liu Bai's mouth lifted slightly. His figure flashed as he charged straight toward the first echelon.
Sensing a fierce wind approaching from behind, one person within the leading group didn't even turn around. He directly slapped a palm backward.
Golden light surged, forming something like a golden tiger that roared as it lunged toward Liu Bai.
Liu Bai chuckled softly. Raising his hand, he threw a punch straight at the golden tiger. He didn't use any spiritual techniques or divine arts—only pure spiritual energy suppression.
A terrifying punch beam transformed into a column of light, charging straight into the tiger's gaping mouth and bursting out from behind. Not only did it completely annihilate the attack, it also slammed heavily into the back of the person ahead, smashing him hard against the mountain wall.
Pfft!
The struck individual spat out a mouthful of blood and looked back in horror.
"God of Slaughter Liu Bai?!"
After clearly seeing Liu Bai's face, he let out a terrified cry. Ignoring his injuries, he immediately mobilized all his spiritual energy, and his entire body abruptly drilled straight into GoldPond Peak…
.....
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